Recently, members of this staff attended an environmental conference at St. Thomas Aquinas College at which we were asked to collaborate with students from other Rockland County schools. But despite the event’s focus on justice, we found the academic culture disappointingly exclusive. 

In one seminar, two male students dominated the conversation, speaking over women whenever we attempted to contribute. In order to be heard, we had to raise our voices and forcefully interject, only to have our ideas parroted by another male student who sought to “piggyback” off our point (or, more precisely, paraphrase it poorly and claim it as his own).

This is not a unique experience, nor is it foreign to Nyack High School. In a poll of 53 female Nyack students and alumni, 46 (87%) responded that they had, at some point, “felt silenced or spoken over by male students in a class at Nyack,” and 24 (45%) responded that a male classmate at Nyack had taken credit for at least one of their ideas. 

An academic environment dominated by men is detrimental to students of all genders. The goal of a seminar is, first and foremost, to learn from a variety of perspectives. When women cannot participate fully, all students miss out on the valuable ideas women offer. 

Furthermore, when male students have more opportunities to speak, they have a greater ability to vocalize misconceptions that can subsequently be clarified by the teacher. Women, on the other hand, lack the opportunity to ask questions and receive feedback that would enhance their understanding of course content. They are left with gaps in their knowledge, putting them at a disadvantage compared to male classmates. 

Additionally, allowing men to dominate a discussion tells women that their ideas are not valued, which can have lasting effects on their self-esteem. A study published in the National Library of Medicine found that “despite evidence from cognitive psychology that men and women are equal in measured intelligence, gender differences in self-estimated intelligence (SEI) are widely reported with males providing systematically higher estimates than females.” In other words, men are more likely than women to perceive themselves as intelligent. Perhaps if women felt respected in academic spaces, they would have greater confidence in their intellectual abilities. 

So, how do we create this feminist classroom? 

Mr. Sheehan, an AP Literature teacher at Nyack, prioritizes women’s voices when discussing issues that predominantly affect them. In a Socratic seminar focused on a character’s decision to terminate her pregnancy, he restricted the conversation to women only. 

"It was uplifting for a teacher to prioritize women’s voices in a situation that mostly affects women," said Madison Milla, a current senior who participated in the seminar with Mr. Sheehan last year. "Discussing this scene with other female students in the classroom allowed us to freely discuss our opinions without having to validate them to male students." 

Though not every class discussion can nor should be limited exclusively to one demographic, teachers should do more to ensure equitable participation. This means that all students should have equal opportunities to speak, but that teachers should actively invite women to participate – particularly in conversations that pertain to gender. It is imperative that teachers address instances where male students are overtaking the conversation, not only to remedy inequities within their individual classrooms, but to teach students how to meaningfully and inclusively engage in dialogue in the future. 

In unmonitored discussions, the burden falls upon male students to create a more welcoming academic environment. Without the ability to occupy sonic space, it would be impossible for women, alone, to solve these inequities. We cannot simply “speak up!” when we are silenced and spoken over. So, it is the responsibility of male students to provide space for women to contribute, to ignore the instinct to interrupt, and to listen attentively to the important perspectives that women bring to the table.